Four San Diego hospitals receive top scores

SAN DIEGO (CNS) - Four hospitals in San Diego County received top scores in annual safety rankings released Wednesday by the Leapfrog Group, but others were found lacking in some areas.

The four to gain an A grade from the nonprofit organization that focuses on healthcare safety were the Kaiser Permanente Medical Center in Grantville, Scripps Memorial Hospital La Jolla, Tri-City Medical Center in Oceanside and UCSD Medical Center in Hillcrest.

The hospitals were judged in a variety of areas, including efforts to make surgery safer, infection-control, adequate staffing to deal with safety issues, and the use of standard safety procedures.

"At a time when more than 1,000 people die every day from preventable accidents in hospitals, Leapfrog believes that patient safety should be job number one in every hospital, 24-7," said Leah Binder, Leapfrog president and CEO.

"To reinforce that goal of consistent vigilance, we've made it easier for patients and others to evaluate a hospital's previous safety record on the Hospital Safety Score website," Binder said. "While patients should always reference a hospital's current grade as the most important indicator of hospital safety, patients may also want to consider the hospital's past record, to assess whether their hospital is making constant improvements or if the hospital has demonstrated consistent excellence."

The hospital grades -- present and past -- are available online at www.hospitalsafetyscore.org.

In other San Diego region grades, Alvarado Hospital in the College Area, Scripps Memorial Hospital Encinitas, Sharp Chula Vista Medical Center and Sharp Grossmont Hospital received a B.

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